Leo gets it

Trying to work out the cost of living in the States is hard for a couple of reasons.

1. There are a shit-ton of mystery taxes that you need to add to everything. We're paying about $100 a month for tv and broadband. I think. Plus state taxes. Plus ineptitude tax. Plus exasperation duty and a-permanent-sense-of-unease tax. Plus cheese. Hold the relish.


2. I have literally no idea what extra stuff we need to pay for. In the UK we have rent, water, electricity, gas, council tax, tv license and then extras like phone, internet and sky tv. In the US you don't have tv license (I guess I'm not paying to watch BBC 1 twice anymore, which is a good thing (though I would pay my license fee alone to watch Sherlock and listen to BBC Radio 4 extra), but, seriously, there should be a couple of tv stations that aren't owned by ratings-crazed whores. Quality tv is not dictated by rednecks with remotes, people!!), but you do have to pay for garbage - what?? Surely the local authorities cover all that stuff in the wads of moolah you give them?

And it doesn't matter how many people you ask - they don't realise that you don't know about this extra junk. My point is - you don't know what you don't know, but we're slowly working it out. I just have a nagging feeling that all the other expats sitting at home laughing at us.

"Mwa-ha-ha - wait til they find out that there are no online comparison websites to get the best deal for your cable tv because they are all basically run by one company. Mwa-ha-ha-ha!"

Dammit, guys!